If you asked traders at the start of the week what they wished to happen in
markets to give them some upwards momentum, you would have found a clear
consensus.

They wanted the German Constitutional Court to give the green light to the
eurozone’s permanent rescue fund. Done. They looked to the US Federal
Reserve bank to unleash another bout of monetary easing, or QE3. Granted,
and beyond expectations. And they hoped for some corporate activity such as
a juicy merger or an IPO. Well, they do not come much bigger than the
planned £30 billion deal between BAE Systems